This past September, the cast of the popular sitcom Will & Grace reunited for a 10-minute online special to encourage Americans to vote in the presidential election. The success of this mini reunion prompted rumors that Will & Grace might go back into production. The rumors are true! This week it was confirmed that the show is returning to the NBC line up for 10 episodes during the 2017-18-television season.
I loved the original Will & Grace and looked forward to it each week. I am pretty excited about the return too and here is why.
1. Great chemistry between all 4 of the lead characters
Like Friends before it and How I Met Your Mother afterward, Will & Grace was a sitcom where all the characters are entwined in a way that was witty and fun. I loved the way neurotic Grace bounced off dependable Will and how over-the-top Karen had such a soft spot for her “”Jack-y.”
2. A chance to get catch up with old friends
Will, Grace, Jack and Karen were ‘friends’ of mine over 15 years ago. Each week I was involved in their lives and escaped my own for 30 minutes of laughter. I can’t say that I thought about these characters much since the show ended (after all, they are not real people) but knowing that they are coming back has made me curious about what they have all been up to. It’s the same feeling of curiosity mixed with nostalgia that I felt when I heard Full House and Gilmore Girls were being rebooted.
3. Smart writing
Happy to hear that the original show runners will attend. Hopefully they will be able to re-capture the tone and timing of the original. The characters were silly at times (especially Karen and Jack) but all written in a way that you could still root for them and laugh at their antics. I have found in some of the other re-boots that have occurred it has been hard to re-establish the original banter but the mini reunion was pretty terrific so I have high hopes for this one.
4. Revisiting these characters in today’s world
A lot has changed in the real world since the fictional world of Will & Grace went off the air in 2006. Same sex marriage was not legally recognized during the show’s original run but it is now. Maybe the re-boot will include a wedding for Will or Jack? And will the new show discuss our new president and if so, how will this affect the characters?
Hopefully Will & Grace will be as topical, groundbreaking and funny as it was a decade ago.
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